New studies have reignited the debate over whether cats or dogs are better pets.

The Des Moines Register reported that one study suggested that dogs can feel positive emotions, such as love, for their owners. The other study indicated that cats might feel stressed when you pet them.

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The dog study was conducted at Emory University. Researchers trained dogs to sit still in MRI machines long enough for brain scans. The scans showed that there was increased brain activity when dogs saw a hand signal for food, smelled a familiar person or saw an owner return to the room.

In the cat study, researchers at the University of Lincoln in the United Kingdom, the University of Sao Paolo and the University of Veterinary Medicine in Austria tested conditions under which cats produce stress hormones.

The researchers said their tests showed that cats produce stress hormones when people pet them.

The Des Moines Register reported that many cat lovers disputed the findings. Workers at pet shelters and pet sitters said they often encountered cats that would run up to people to be petted. One veterinarian suggested that researchers could be mistaken because of a relative lack of research on cats.

The veterinarian said cats have a short window within the first two or three weeks of life in which they can be socialized to touch.

Animal experts said dogs also have more experience with humans. Humans began domesticating dogs about 14,000 years ago, while cats were domesticated about 7,000 years ago.